UK & The Euro.

[j.sabourn]

Euro Money... The only time I came into contact with was a couple of years ago whilst staying in Amsterdam. Remember it had no feel to and reminded me of monopoly money. Nothing beats the old British tenner or twenty, nowadays believe don't have the quid note, notes start at a fiver which doesn't buy too much either nowadays. Would be sacrilege to go onto the Euro cash, the queen for starters would not be on, maybe hitlers face might reappear out of the mists of time. Just thinking the other day of all the worlds leaders who spout all sorts of wisdom, looking at their ages most weren't even born when times were really hard, yet they come out with all sorts of claims about the past, which really they have no idea of. Most have never seen a shot fired in anger and yet have the power to put others in harms way. Its about some of the older statesmen if there are any left started coming out and showing their talents if they ever had any. This of course excludes Brown Blair and Heath and any more of their ilk. The first two are only boys by some of our standards anyway. JS

[happy daze john in oz]

Captain, does this mean the obese can apply for positions in, lets say, The Royal ballet, corps de ballet, and not be turned down? Well fan my tutu. I think I'd pay double to see a fat swan...or is that swine?

Cheers, Rodney

If you refer to Prescot it is ther latter.

[Neil Morton]

The old expression, " the world has gone to sea in a cocked hat ", comes to mind. Capitalism will win out no matter what. World domination by money is easier now than it has ever been. Even as I write this our local news bulletin is telling me that the Aussie, the Kiwi, and the US dollar, the British pound. and OH! heavens to Betsy, the Euro are up and down like a brides nightgown. As if I give a rat's fat ..... Those crooks in the stock exchanges and banks are laughing at the common man and whilst they sit down to lobster and fine wine with their political cronies ever more it will be so.
The longer we strive to maintain our identity as that Commonwealth of Nations that brought peace, stability, and prosperity, ( albeit with gun boats under an empirical regime ), the more we will be dragged into the morass of global envy.
Tell your politicians to give Europe the big elbow and join an economy tied to the "Yankee Dollar ". Just my opinion. Easy on the flack lads just sayin'.
I am not finished yet, as you may have guessed I'm in full rant. No on second thoughts I'll let it be, obesity and welfare can wait for another time.

[j.sabourn]

When it comes to earnings and the government jumps in and says they cant afford it, it makes me wonder what they cant afford. Private Industry is paying for wages, the more the working man earns the more he pays in tax therefore on the face of it the government should be clapping their hands. If a company cant survive due to high salarys they should first think about reducing some of these directors who are there for their name only, and appear for a couple of meetings a couple of hours a month and receive a workers wage for a year, their payouts are unbelievable for what they produce. It always falls back on the work force for any blame. JS

[Keith Tindell]

The workers have always been political pawns, when the government announces cuts to money for public services, as happened here yesterday, the immediate reaction is to announce there will be less nurse on wards, less police on the beat, less ambulances, fire engines etc. All designed to put pressure back. I can recall in my time in the fire service, being told no money for virtually anything, and having 4 fireman to man the appliance on the station, and upstairs in the HQ there were 11 others in the offices, all having rank,, KT

[Jim Brady]

Keith yes there are more cuts on the way even if Labour wins the next election.There is only one way out of this as I see it and that is a rise in income tax but all governments are terrified of that word.Did we pay 33% at one time ?I'm not suggesting anything as drastic as that but I'm sure 2p rise wouldn't harm anyone and I'm sure many people would'nt mind paying an extra £2.00 on a hundred quid if it helped to cut the deficit.I remember getting a £24.00 pm rise and it moved me into the company car bracket for tax purposes which was £30.00 pm so I ended up £6.00 pm worse off.I think it was 23p when Harold Wilson was in and it was James Callaghan I think that dropped it to 20p which it has remained at since.Peoples wages are static plus the threshold was increased taking thousands out of the tax bracket,although the unemployment figure is down the vast majority of the people are on 16hrs pw and many not earning enough to pay tax.
Regards.
Jim.B.

[happy daze john in oz]

There are only three currencies around the world that carry any influence.
The USA Dollar, 'in God we trust'
The British Pound
The Japanese Yen.

Why would any government want to give away such a prestige situation for an airy fairy currency that is as much use as the proverbial on a bull outside of EU.

The currencies above are accepted anywhere around the globe, ever tried changing a Euro outside of Europe?

[j.sabourn]

Extract from the business news of the International Express...Exports to the EU now make up just 36 per cent of the UKs overseas trade, barely more than we sell to the Commonwealth. analysis of Government statistics shows the true figures are much lower than the 44 per cent official total. That figure includes goods which go via ports in Belgium and the Netherlands which are counted as exports to the EU despite them merely in transit and immediately shipped off to other non Euro countries. While exports to the EU are in decline, business with the Commonwealth and Anglosphere markets such as the US, Australia and Hong Kong is booming, which have reached 33 per cent of the total. A spokesman said these figures demonstrate how redundant membership of the EU has become as relative to the British economy. Lib. Dem. Nick Clegg is still advocating the merits of staying in what a clown that bloke is, lets hope he is finished in politics at the next general election, these are my sentiments. The ones on the trade exports are official. What advantage has the EU ever been to the UK. Someones dreams maybe, others nightmares. Any leader of the UK who still advocates staying in the EU and those of the past who have put Britain in such a present position belong in the tower of London, they could also bring back water boarding without my having any scruples about. JS

[j.sabourn]

Further to post 18 of the Int. Express of Dec. 17th. Britains trade with the EU was one of Lib Dems leader Nick Cleggs key arguments for staying in the organisation ahead of the European elections in May this year during his TV debates. UKIP spokesman William Dartmouth MEP said, The UKs rising exports to the Commonwealth and declining exports to the EU demonstrates there is no economic reason for the UK to be in a political union with the low growth economies of the Eurozone. In 1973 when we joined the then common market we turned our backs on the Commonwealth. It was a bad mistake then, it is even more of a mistake now. JS

[Jim Brady]

I've posted this on this thread just to show the deductions from a weekly wage for a single man and also the difference in the wage scale as we knew it many years ago (or not so long ago).I've been out today for my usual few pints with my mates,I got talking to a young lad,one of my mates sons.He has become a Liverpool Docker (about 4 months) and he was telling me the situation down there now.I think that there are only 250 dockers down there now,imagine that to about 30.000 years ago.Anyway the contract is a guaranteed 40 hours per week at £10.00 per hour hence £400 per week.Overtime rate £14.00 per hour.What I was surprised at was out of his top line of £400 he ends up with £326.00 net I would've thought by going by what we used to pay his deductions would've been far greater than that.I'm sure that there is much more to manoeuvre there for the Chancellor to raise money instead of all the cuts plus the promised cuts.
Regards.
Jim.B.